President Obama thanks the legends of Chicago house music in a video message

by: Lucy Davidson Jul 7, 2015

President Obama sent a special video message to the “househeads” of his previous home city of Chicago, acknowledging the legendary members of the Chosen Few DJs and the city’s pivotal role in the birth and development of house music in the United States.

House music was played for the first time in legendary venues like the Loft, the Music Box, and the Warehouse (from which the genre’s name is derived). The original Chosen Few DJs are responsible for bringing house music to the basements and underground clubs in the 1970s and 1980s, and exposing underground music fans to this soulful new style. The group didn’t add a new member for thirty years, until 2006 when Terry Hunter joined the Chosen Few’s ranks, and again in 2012 with the influential Mike Dunn. Each of the Chosen Few DJs has been honored as part of the 100 Most Influential DJs in Chicago House Music History.

In 1990, Chosen Few member Kim Parham suggested the first-ever Chosen Few Old School Reunion Picnic, a tradition now twenty years in the making. The picnic was initially a reunion of old friends and family members, but has since grown into one of the largest, most highly anticipated house music events in the world. Attendees include other renowned DJs in addition to the Chosen Few. The commitment to a family-reunion atmosphere has remained since the first picnic, and though the Chosen Few Old School Reunion Picnic is now an institution celebrating its twenty-fifth year, the event remains as welcoming and unassuming as it was in 1990. The President congratulates the DJs on reaching this impressive milestone, and house music fans everywhere thank this celebrated crew for giving rise to one of the first sub-genres of electronic music. Watch the President’s video message below:

Via: Chosen Few DJs

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Tags: Chicago House, Chosen Few, obama, president obama, video message